A Seattle company called Henbart Limited Liability Co. plans to capitalize on the shortage of new office space in Ballard with its first ground-up development: a two-building project across the street from Ballard Commons Park.

The five- and six-story project will have approximately 21,000 square feet of loft-style office space, the same amount of retail along 22nd Avenue Northwest and 80 apartments and four townhouses that will face the park, said Henbart President Mark Craig.

Aside from a few small pockets there was no new office space available for rent in Ballard at the end of 2013, according to a report published by commercial real estate company Jones Lang LaSalle.

Offices in the Henbart project will range from 1,200 to 1,800 square feet for smaller companies and startups, Craig said.

In addition to providing needed office space in Ballard, the project will show how to effectively connect a mix of uses in one project, said officials of the project. It's being designed by Seattle architecture firm Studio Meng Strazzara.

Two other Seattle companies, W.G. Clark Construction and Eagle Rock Ventures, are working on the project: Clark is handling pre-construction work, and Eagle Rock Ventures is serving as the development consultant. Eagle Rock was co-developer of the acclaimed Melrose Market retail-and-restaurant project on Seattle’s Capitol Hill.

“We really like the idea of connecting a variety of uses within a project. We really feel it makes for a more interesting small community,” Craig said Monday.

The northern building across from Ballard Commons Park will be primarily residential with two floors of office space. Underground parking will be included in the overall project, with spots for the offices, retail and residents.

The project will differentiate itself by having two buildings rather than “a mega building,” said Charles Strazzara, principal of Studio Meng Strazzara, in a press release. The northern building “erodes down to the park and also takes into consideration the sun angles,” he said, and the buildings are set back in order to create more pedestrian space for “lingering and gathering."

There will be a central lobby between the buildings, and office workers and residents will have access to the roof-top garden.

Craig said Henbart plans to break ground on the project, where a Bartell Drugs currently operates, in the first quarter of 2015. He said he’s still finalizing plans and didn't have a total development cost. Henbart paid $3.4 million for the 30,000-square-foot property in 2011, according to public records.

Some members of the Bartell family are part of Henbart LLC, but Henbart and the drug store chain are separate entities. Bartell recently opened a new store in Ballard at the northwest corner of 15th Avenue Northwest and Northwest Market Street.

The Bartell store on 22nd Avenue Northwest opened more than 50 years ago and will continue to operate until the site is redeveloped, Bartell spokeswoman Helen Neville said. “We have had preliminary discussions with Henbart about retail opportunities in the new development,” she said, and added that some customers have asked Bartell to consider operating both the new store and the old one.

Bartell operates two stores near each another in other neighborhoods, such as Seattle's Queen Anne.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to say there are a few small pockets of office space in Ballard.